About
I am a researcher specialized in biomedical signal processing and machine learning, with a focus on sleep electrophysiology and neurodegenerative disorders.
During my PhD at the University of Bern I developed automatic sleep staging solutions, enhancing the reliability and analysis of overnight polysomnography - modeling uncertainty and multi-expert annotation. As a postdoctoral researcher with the MeDiTech group (SUPSI) and the Neurocenter (EOC), I coordinate projects in neural data analysis, building open-source tools for large-scale sleep data (e.g., recently released SLEEPYLAND tool) and methods for digital biomarker extraction.
Currently, my research explores the role of sleep in Parkinson’s disease (PD), exploiting both wearable sensors and high-density EEG data, and conducting statistical analyses to uncover clinical markers in the levodopa-induced dyskinesias (LID) subgroup of PD patients.
My work involves dissemination, mentoring, and international collaboration to promote tech innovation and practical applications in sleep science and neuroscience.
Machine learningDeep learningPSG / hdEEGIn-ear EEGActigraphy
Selected projects
01/2024 – 04/2025
SLEEPYLAND: A Python library to analyse the large amount of NSRR sleep data via deep learning algorithms
MeDiTech–SUPSI (CH) & Harvard University – NSRR (USA)
Project manager: Luigi Fiorillo.
- Funding scheme
- Swiss Open Research Data Grants (CHORD) · Track C, 2nd Call
- Grant number
- TP80
- Approved amount
- CHF 100,000
- Funding period
- January 2024 – April 2025
I conceived, planned, obtained funds and managed the SLEEPYLAND project, i.e., the first open-source Python toolbox for fair benchmarking of automated sleep staging on the highest number of polysomnography data.
Project details
I developed standardized pipelines for preprocessing, training, and evaluation, achieving state-of-the-art performance on 300,000+ hours of sleep recordings. Integrated and benchmarked SOTA algorithms with ensemble modeling. The tool is currently adopted in clinical studies (Bern, Lugano), supported by NSRR, with multiple conference presentations (ESRS2024, WSC2025) and an article published in npj Digital Medicine.
Tutorials
Related publications
11/2024 – 10/2027
Disabling levodopa-induced dyskinesia in Parkinson’s disease: the role of sleep
Ospedale Regionale di Lugano, Ente Ospedaliero Cantonale, Lugano (CH)
Supervised by Prof. Dr. med. Salvatore Galati.
- Funding scheme
- SNSF Project funding
- Grant number
- 10001305
- Approved amount
- CHF 322,410
- Funding period
- 01 November 2024 – 31 October 2027
In this project I am investigating the role of sleep-dependent synaptic homeostasis in levodopa-induced dyskinesia (LID) in Parkinson’s disease (PD).
Project details
Using high-density EEG, actigraphy and polysomnography data in PD patients and controls, I assess alterations in nocturnal slow-wave downscaling and diurnal theta upscaling processes. I recently uncovered the first evidence of a bidirectional-causal impairment in these processes, with persistent theta abnormalities specific to dyskinetic patients.
In parallel, I am conducting an interventional study where PTAS acoustic stimulation is delivered via the Tosoo system to enhance slow-wave activity, with the goal of evaluating whether improved sleep oscillatory dynamics can ameliorate dyskinetic events. Results presented at multiple international conferences (SfN2025) and an article published in npj Parkinson’s Disease.
04/2026 – Present
Dipyridamole and EEG biomarkers in RLS: A placebo-controlled crossover study across sleep-wake states
Sleep Research Institute, Madrid (ES)
Supervised by Prof. Dr. med. Diego García-Borreguero.
- Funding scheme
- SNSF Postdoc.Mobility
- Grant number
- 239082
- Approved amount
- CHF 107,100
- Funding period
- 01 April 2026 – 31 March 2028
Selected publications
03/2026Fiorillo, L., Lombardi, G., La Porta, N., Arnaud, L., Veneruso, M., Castelnovo, A., Bertaina, I., Staedler, C., Kaelin-Lang, A. & Galati, S.
npj Parkinson’s Disease
Dei Rossi, A., Metaldi, M., Bechny, M., Filchenko, I., van der Meer, J., Schmidt, M., Bassetti, C., Tzovara, A., Faraci, F.D. & Fiorillo, L.
npj Digital Medicine
Fiorillo, L., Monachino, G., van der Meer, J., Pesce, M., Warncke, J., Schmidt, M., Bassetti, C., Tzovara, A., Favaro, P. & Faraci, F.D.
npj Digital Medicine
Fiorillo, L., Puiatti, A., Papandrea, M., Ratti, P. L., Favaro, P., Roth, C., Bargiotas, P., Bassetti C. & Faraci, F. D.
Sleep Medicine Reviews
Experience & education
04/2026 – PresentVisiting Postdoctoral Researcher
Sleep Research Institute, Madrid (ES)
SNSF Postdoc. Mobility Grant
Project & supervisor
“Dipyridamole and EEG biomarkers in RLS: A placebo-controlled crossover study across sleep-wake states”
Supervised by Prof. Dr. med. Diego García-Borreguero.
Postdoctoral Researcher
MeDiTech–SUPSI & INSI–EOC, Lugano (CH)
Development and application of machine learning algorithms in sleep and neuroscience (PSG/hdEEG, in-ear-EEG, actigraphy).
Responsibilities
- Acting as PM for projects in collaboration with local and international companies and clinics.
- Development of innovative projects by contributing both to the definition of methodologies for the analysis of data and to their implementation.
- Supervise PhD researchers in the lab to coordinate research efforts for increased efficiency; BSc/MSc Thesis Advisor.
- Peer reviewing for high impact journals: SLEEP, Frontiers in sleep, Nature Scientific Reports, npj Digital Medicine, Journal of Biomedical and Health Informatics, PLOS Journals.
Researcher and Teaching Assistant
MeDiTech–SUPSI, Lugano (CH)
Teaching
Applied Statistics and Data Analysis (MSc course); Artificial Intelligence, Deep Learning & Healthcare (MD-PhD SSPH+ course); BSc/MSc Thesis Advisor.
PhD in Computer Science
CVG Lab, Universität Bern, Bern (CH)
Thesis: “Automated Sleep Scoring, Deep Learning and Physician Supervision”
Supervisors
Prof. Dr. Paolo Favaro, Dr. Francesca Faraci, Collab. Prof. Dr. med. Claudio Bassetti, Prof. Dr. med. Markus H. Schmidt.
Visiting Graduate Researcher
Monti Lab, UCLA, Los Angeles (US)
SNSF Doc. Mobility Grant
Project & supervisor
“Real-Time Automatic Sleep Scoring and Sleep Patterns Monitoring during Low Intensity Focused Ultrasounds stimuli”
Supervised by Prof. Dr. med. Martin Monti.
MSc in Biomedical Engineering
Politecnico di Torino, Torino (IT)
Thesis & supervisor
“Quantitative and objective assessment of motor functions in subjects affected by Parkinson’s disease by using a 3-axial accelerometer sensor and machine learning techniques”
Supervised by Prof. Marco Knaflitz.
BSc in Biomedical Engineering
Federico II, Napoli (IT)
Thesis & supervisor
“Models for the Genesis of ECG”
Supervised by Prof. Mario Sansone.
Programming & tools
Python · C · C++ · R · MATLAB · SciPy · Scikit-learn · Keras · TensorFlow · PyTorch · Git · LaTeX
